Scottish and English: 1. perhaps a habitational name from Pert on the North Esk near Montrose, named with a Pictish term for a wood or copse. Mac-Lysaght records this as a surname in Ireland, noting that the chief branch originated in Newark on Trent (Nottinghamshire) in the 18th century, though there are earlier instances of the name. 2. variant spelling of Pert.